THERAPY ANIMALS AND ANIMAL ASSISTED THERAPY    2300w

animal assisted therapy. The American Veterinary Medical Foundation states animal assisted therapy is a goal-oriented intervention that uses animals as a primary resource in the treatment process. As animal assisted therapy continues to grow, it is important that psychologists recognize the legal and ethical concerns relating to alternative therapies such as, misuse, consent, multiple relationships, conflict of interest, competence, cooperation, and culture. These ethical issues must be navigated carefully in adherence to the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. If practiced correctly animal assisted therapy can have significant effects on mental health outcomes.

The Use of Animals in Therapy: Therapy Animals and Animal Assisted Therapy

Animals have played an important role in the lives of humans since ancient times. Recently, animals have expanded their roles and have been trained to assist those with physical, mental, social, and educational disabilities. There are three classifications of assistance animals: (i) service dogs, (ii) emotional support animals, and (iii) therapy animals (American Veterinary Medical Foundation, 2018). Service dogs are individually trained to perform tasks for those with a disability (American Veterinary Medical Foundation, 2018). Examples include, assisting individuals who are blind with navigation, alerting individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to the presence of s